Humans of UniSA: Monica Pascale

Everyone has a story. A defining moment of their existence that makes them the person they are today. For Humans of UniSA, we delve into the depths of human nature and speak with some students to discover a slice of their personal history.

Monica Pascale

Bachelor of Psychological Science

I used to be such a mess. I always felt stressed and worried about everything. I also had a really low self-esteem and didn’t feel as though I could properly navigate my life. When I look back on my adolescence, I always felt pressured to get good grades at school and live up to a particular standard. Unfortunately, not a lot has changed, but I’m getting better at it. Something that’s helped me deal with all of this is social media— particularly Twitter. I say this because I’ve been able to discover a lot and interact with people who are in similar situations to me. It’s become my own distraction. I’m able to escape from all the pressures in life, even if it’s just for a few moments.

I think through my study of psychology, I’ve been able to identify what I’m going through and how to better manage it. In my experience, it’s better to recognise your emotions, opposed to shying away from them. It takes a lot of guts to be vulnerable and if I could go back in time and tell myself anything, it would be to open myself up to others more.

In saying all of this, when it comes to things like sex, I’m perfectly content. I’m not really sexually active, but that’s okay for me. I don’t need to seek gratification through intercourse. I’m comfortable enough in myself. Sure, sex might be something I think about quite a bit, but it’s not a priority. I’m happy just doing me.